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Less than a week after he met with U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood to advocate for the project, Mayor Alvin Brown applauded the federal government’s decision to provide a $10 million grant to JAXPORT.

The Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant will supply $10 million to help build an intermodal container transfer facility. This enables freight-loading directly between rail and ships, a development that will help curb truck traffic on Heckscher Drive while increasing efficiency at Jacksonville’s waterfront.

“With our economy on the rebound, this project is vital in our mission to put Jacksonville back to work,” said Mayor Brown. “Our port is a powerful economic engine and we must continue to work together to maximize its returns for our region.”

Mayor Brown met personally with U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood in Washington last week as part of an ongoing effort to advocate for the project.

“This is an excellent example of how public-private partnerships benefit our community,” said Mayor Brown. “The City of Jacksonville, State of Florida, JAXPORT, CSX, and our state and federal legislative delegations worked closely together to turn this economic development priority into a reality.”

In October, Mayor Brown was named chairman on the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ Metro Exports and Ports Task Force, a position that has helped to build relationships regarding global transportation issues.

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